A Most Interesting Career
by The Steppy One
Summary: Neville looks back on certain days throughout his teaching career at Hogwarts.
1. How It All Began

This is my rather late birthday present for Realmer06 who asked me to write Neville interacting with the 'next gen' lot at school. When it started out it was nicely planned and set out, and then my muse got a hold of it and messed everything up. I'd apologies but I'm kinda happy with the way it ended up. I'll post a chapter a day (or more), I'd post the whole thing tonight but I just need the last chapter reading through my eyes other than mine before I do.

Realmer, I hope you enjoy this and apologies for being so late with it! :)

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><p><strong>How it all Began<strong>

He had spent the two years after the battle rebuilding and helping and needing to feel needed and while he had revelled in the purpose of everything he had been doing, when, on his twentieth birthday, he had his contract to – officially – join the Aurors and all was needed was his signature, he found he couldn't do it.

Six times he had found himself staring at the contract, quill in hand and poised above the dotted line at the bottom of the parchment and six times he had blotted his quill and placed it back on the table.

After the sixth time of not signing the contract he huffed, threw the quill down on the table and stomped outside to garden. He had been living with his Grandmother since the war ended but since everything that went on during his seventh year, and on that fateful night, he no longer lived there with a feeling that he constantly had to prove himself. He had grown up in ways he shouldn't have had to and he had done things he never thought himself capable of, but because of all that, he had finally found himself feeling comfortable with his abilities and courage and his Grandmother did, too.

The garden was his sanctuary. A lot of his healing from the horrors he had endured and witnessed had been sorted, organised and dealt with inside his head whilst working through the rows of vegetables, beds of flowers and patches of magical plants which they could use, sell or give away to friends.

He landed heavily on the dry grass and picked up his trowel. For a few minutes all he did was dig aggressively into an unoccupied piece of soil and try and work out exactly what the source of his hesitation was. As he realised he had been doing nothing but disturbing his beautifully turned piece of earth in front of him an owl came into view and landed next to him. Neville frowned, not initially recognising the owl, but as he untied the scroll from the owl's leg he noticed a tiny 'H' embossed into the strap and realised his letter had come from Hogwarts. He had an inkling about who was writing to him and when he saw the Hufflepuff crest at the top of the paper he smiled.

_Dear Neville,_

_Many thanks for the Valerian Sprigs, I have still yet to work out what the cause of the acidic soil in Greenhouse Two is, possibly an errant spell from a first year but until I work it out I may call upon your stocks some more, and no, Neville I won't pay any less than what we pay our other occasional suppliers for speciality plants and roots. The payment for the Sprigs was authorised yesterday so the gold will be in your Gringotts Vault today._

_I hear from a very proud Professor McGonagall that you have been asked to officially join the Aurors along with Potter and Weasley and I am also very proud of you, however, I admit I am not looking forward to the time when your work stops you from being able to visit the Hogwarts Greenhouses to give this old witch a hand. I am being selfish, I know, and I know that with you becoming an Auror our community (and at least one part of the Ministry of Magic) is in safer hands._

_As always, you are welcome at Hogwarts at any time, especially in the greenhouses. I shall be in touch soon when my stocks of Valerian Sprigs run low again._

_Kind regards,_

_Pomona_

Neville smiled as he always did after reading a letter from Pomona Sprout, but he had panicked when, yet again, he realised his time in Hogwarts' Greenhouses would be limited when he started work.

He rolled his eyes at himself, he had known all along what his hesitation had been about, but he didn't like that he had doubts about doing something he had invested two years of his time into.

And he didn't want to think about what his Gran would think should he not join the Aurors. Then again, he knew she had noticed him hesitate and not sign his contract once and she hadn't said anything, just smiled when he looked her way. Maybe her heart wasn't set on her Grandson being an Auror after all.

He thought for a second and something in his brain clicked into place. Before his nerve left him, he turned on the spot and Apparated out of his garden and to the well trodden path leading out of Hogsmeade and up to the school.

With every step he doubted his decision, thought it was cheeky, inappropriate, but then he remembered Pomona's letter and knew that she was hinting at _something_. He didn't know what, but he intended to find out. Halfway up the track he sent his Patronus ahead and hoped that Hagrid wasn't in the middle of anything important and he was interrupting him with his plea to let him into the grounds.

As he reached the gates he couldn't help but grin at Hagrid walking to greet him.

'Neville! Good ter see yer!'

'Hi Hagrid,' he replied with a smile. 'How are you?'

'Ar, can' complain, can' complain. Yerself?' Heard it's only a matter o' time before yer join Harry and Ron in the Aurors.' Neville let his smile slip for a second, thankfully Hagrid was too busy unlocking the gates to notice. 'Ye should 'ear Professor McGonagall, she couldn't be more proud o' the three o' yer, and Seamus an' Dean o' course!'

Neville's heart sank as he added another name to the list of people who he would disappoint should he not sign the contract waiting for him at home. His thoughts had preoccupied him for longer than he had planned because Hagrid was looking at him, obviously waiting for a response.

'Err… yeah, good.'

He knew his response had been anything but adequate. He stepped through the open gates.

'Well, I know Professor Sprout wasn't quite so happy, she'll miss yer sommet rotten once yer full time at the Ministry.'

Neville smiled. 'Yeah, I'll miss her, too. And this place. I've got used to visiting so often.'

Hagrid beamed and clapped him on the shoulder. 'Ye'll always be welcome 'ere Neville, whatever y'end up doin'.'

Neville looked up at Hagrid, wondering whether he had guessed what Neville's thoughts had been or whether Hagrid was just being his usual calm, reassuring self.

'Thanks, Hagrid. I'll see you later.'

'Aye, see yer later, Neville.'

Neville knew his ultimate destination was the greenhouses but a trip to Hogwarts – no matter the time between visits – was never complete without a trip to the memorial garden.

When he reached the long wall of names he knew and names he didn't he took a minute to say thank you for their sacrifice. After a minute he opened his eyes and started to walk towards the greenhouses. With a tricky wave of his wand and a moments' concentration he was inside. Professor Sprout had told him how to unlock the greenhouses a long time ago knowing they were safe in his hands. He walked through to the far end and immediately sought the Venomous Tenacular he was trying to nurse back to health from a mystery illness. Not knowing what had caused the leaves to turn blue and for the plant to lose any disposition to attack anyone or anything, Neville had no idea where to start. He could only find three documented cases of Venomous Tentacular leaves turning blue and none of the causes were consistent and none of them could possibly have happened in a school environment. So he had tried to cure it with a specialist healing plant food, a few tried and tested spells and a little bit of TLC.

'All right, Toothy? Any less blue today?' The plant raised its head as it sensed someone near it. Neville looked over its leaves and saw they were a slightly greener shade of blue. He nodded and grinned. 'Looks like you are! Excellent!'

He gently palmed one of the smaller leaves and the plant tried to resist. Neville leaned closer to the leaf to get a better look. Before he could react the plant had locked its jaws around Neville's thumb. Concerned only for a second – the plant's 'teeth' had fallen out before the rest of the leaves had turned blue – Neville laughed, surely the fact that the plant was starting to defend itself from possible attackers was only a good thing?

'I would have told you in my letter but I wanted you to see for yourself.'

Neville turned around at Professor Sprout's voice and grinned. 'Was it overnight that there was a change?'

'When I did my rounds at nine I thought the leaves were slightly lighter, but with it being dark I wanted to see what it was like in the day time and my thoughts were confirmed when I came down after breakfast this morning.'

'I just hope that it carries on, considering we had no idea what we were dealing with I honestly thought he was a gonner!'

Professor Sprout walked the length of the greenhouse and poked the soil the plant was sitting in.

'Might give it another water, just in case.'

Neville nodded. 'Probably best.'

Sprout picked up a small watering can and pointed her wand at it. A couple of second later she was lightly sprinkling the soil with water and the plant momentarily shuddered.

'Is the Tentacula the only reason you're here?' she asked. Neville knew that the professor thought there was another reason.

'Not the only reason, no.'

'Are you going to make an old witch guess or are you going to tell me?'

Neville sighed but managed a smile. 'Honestly, I don't know if what I thought I thought ten minutes ago is true or whether I was just looking for an easy way out of a situation I'm not too sure about.'

Sprout nodded and tested the soil again with her fingertips. She carried on sprinkling.

'You're never normally the one to take the easy way out of something, Neville.'

'Well, if I'm honest, if what I thought is true comes to be then it won't be easy in the short term.'

'But in the long term?'

Neville knew it was now or never, that if he kept talking he might talk himself out of asking an important question.

'Professor, in your letter, were you hinting that you needed a hand around here and that I would be welcome to some sort of assistant's job should I be cheeky enough to come up here and ask you?'

Professor Sprout poked the soil once more, nodded and set the can down on the work bench. She turned and looked at Neville and a second later grinned at him.

'Absolutely! But none of this assistant's nonsense! If you come to work here I'll be training you up to be my replacement. Professor Dumbledore's portrait agrees with me that with all the knowledge you have now and if you work hard then you could be ready to take over in three years. However by the end of the year I'd want you taking first year classes at least twice a week. I would have discussed this with Professor McGonagall, but I know she's hoping to have all five of the Gryffindor boys from your year join the Aurors, so I had a feeling she wasn't going to be too helpful once she knew I had another intention for you, should you wish it.'

Neville groped around him for the chair that he was positive was there. Professor Sprout seemed to notice and smiled kindly while she waved her wand and summoned the chair towards her. It hit the back of Neville's knees and he sat down heavily.

'I… Me? Teaching? But I… I'm not… I've never…'

'Of course you've never thought about it because it's never been an option before! Neville I… forgive me if what I'm saying is presumptuous and wrong but… I've never seen you miserable when you're in the greenhouses or talking about Herbology, but if I've ever asked about working for the Ministry you've answered briefly and then brought the conversation back to the plants. I just don't see you working for the Ministry for the rest of your life.'

Neville swallowed hard. 'It's all I've known since I left school. It's all I've done since the war ended. It's what's… expected, isn't it?'

Professor Sprout chuckled and conjured a chair out of thin air.

'Oh, Neville, for that ghastly year I watched you and your friends fight and fight and fight. No one _expected_ it of you but we were so proud of you for fighting. We couldn't show it without putting the school or the students at risk but we had never been so proud. But if there's one thing that you fought for, that we fought for, that Harry _died_ for, it was for freedom and the choice to do what we want with our lives. If you want to be an Auror, go and be an Auror, but if you think that you want to make a career doing something you love and that I know you'd be excellent at, then maybe taking a chance in this old greenhouse is an idea.'

Neville couldn't help but smile. 'But… Professor McGonagall might not want me teaching here.'

'Oh, Neville she would adore having you here.'

'But you said-.'

'I said that she would be disappointed but after she'd realised this is what you wanted to do she'd love you being part of the teaching staff.'

Neville took a deep breath. 'Teaching staff… That's insane!'

Professor Sprout stood and waved her wand. The chair disappeared and she started walking up and down the rows of Lavender shoots.

'Neville, I think at the end of your sixth year the thought of you becoming an Auror would have seen insane but for the past few years you've been working hard to reach that status. I think you've proved that you are capable of anything you put your mind to.'

Neville took a deep breath. 'And do you… you believe I can do it, do you?'

Professor Sprout pulled a weed from the soil in front of her. 'I wouldn't have asked you had I thought otherwise. The offer is there should you wish to take it Neville, but even if you decide the Ministry is the place for you, you are always welcome in these greenhouses.'

Neville knew he was being dismissed to make his decision. He stood on shaky legs and pushed the chair to its previous resting place.

'I'll… err… I'll let you know.'

'Take your time, this is a decision you don't want to rush.'

Neville smiled and nodded his head. He made his way to the door and turned around. 'Thank you, Professor. This offer… I'm flattered… really. Thank you.'

'You're welcome, Neville.'

Neville turned and strode up towards the castle. He tried not to think too hard about his decision, in the hopes that he would be able to compare the two offers objectively and with a clear head. But as he walked up the path towards the newly – completely – restored castle, he couldn't help but grin. His head tried to tell his heart that he should at least come up with a pros and cons list for the two options but after a couple of minutes of not even thinking about becoming an Auror anymore, his head gave up.

Neville carried on walking, and even though he didn't actually have a final destination in mind, three minutes later he found himself staring at the door to Professor McGonagall's study. His smile slipped as he realised the conversation he was about to have. And for a second he thought about turning right back around and leaving that particular talk to another day.

He chastised himself for his momentary cowardice and raised his hand to knock on the door. As he waited he half prayed that she was somewhere else in the castle, but all too soon he heard familiar footsteps behind the door and the slow grate of the handle turning.

'Neville! What a pleasant surprise!'

'Good morning, Professor, I'm not interrupting you, am I?'

Again, he half hoped that she was extremely busy and didn't have the time to talk to him.

'Not at all! I know I have paperwork to sort before the final few Hogwarts Letters go out to the July birthdays but it being the holidays I do have plenty of time on my hands. What can I do for you?'

'Oh, um, well I just wanted to talk to you about something.'

A small frown of concern crossed her face and she opened the door wider and beckoned him inside. She gestured that he sit and as he did he couldn't help but feel like he was in trouble and was about to get a telling off, even though the Professor wasn't, as yet, angry with him.

'Nothing's wrong is it, Neville?'

Neville smiled. 'Nothing at all, quite the opposite actually. Hagrid said you'd heard that we'd got our Auror contracts through.'

He watched as Professor McGonagall physically swelled with pride. His heart sank a little. 'Kingsley owled me himself!' Neville felt like banging his head on the desk but he kept his becoming-more-fake-by-the-second smile firmly stuck on his face.

'Other people got their contracts, too, Terry and Ernie and Parvati…'

'And I am proud of each and every one of them, but _all_ the Gryffindor boys from your year are becoming Aurors, that's a very big deal!'

Against his will, Neville sighed deeply. Instantly Professor McGonagall Frowned.

'Is there something wrong, Neville?'

He managed to meet her gaze for a second before staring resolutely at the desk between them.

'Um… well… it's just…'

He tried to think of some way of lessening the blow but he couldn't find the words.

'Pomona has offered you the chance to shadow her and eventually replace her and you can think of nothing you would rather do than teach the students of Hogwarts Herbology.'

Neville's jaw dropped. Had he been that obvious? Or had Professor Sprout's behaviour around her search for a replacement been watched thoroughly.'

'Well… yes, that's exactly it.'

He couldn't meet her gaze, terrified of the disappointment he would no doubt see on her face.

'Neville,' he screwed his eyes up, waiting for some unpleasant words he wouldn't know how to deal with, 'I don't think you'll ever know how proud I am of you.' He couldn't help but look up and stare at her. 'I'm sorry it's taken me this long to tell you to your face, I've said it over and over again about the whole lot of you who fought and were strong and defied evil and are making a world a better place by helping rebuild it, but I've never said it to you personally, and for that I'm sorry. So, I'll say it again, I'm so very proud of you, Neville. You, above others have come the furthest and have grown the most.'

Neville squirmed on his seat and only managed another glance at the Professor before looking somewhere else. 'So, you're not disappointed that I'm having second thoughts about joining the Aurors?'

McGonagall smiled kindly and pulled the lid off her box of Ginger Newts, she held out the tin and Neville took one.

'It is enough that you are wanted by Kingsley and the Ministry because you have the skills, the temperament and the courage to keep our world safe-.'

'But… but I'm letting people down if I leave all that behind and come to work here! I'm letting Kingsley down, my Grandmother, Harry, Ron, everyone who encouraged me during training, and I'm letting you down, too! I just… don't want to disappoint anyone.'

He took a large bite of his Ginger Newt to give himself something to do.

'And what about you, Neville?' He noticed her more stern tone had made an appearance. 'What about the dreams that you had before the war? What about us sitting in these very seats and me telling you to pursue Herbology with vigour because not only were you good at it but you enjoyed it and you were never happier than when you were in the Greenhouses?'

Neville shuffled again. 'Yeah, but, the war-.'

'Is over.' She seemed to wilt as if remembering some of the horrors she had had to witness during that fateful year. 'I have seen two wars come and go, personally I think that is quite enough for one person in a lifetime, and while war changes people and the way they think, when all's said and done and the battle is fought, it shouldn't mean that their previous dreams are no longer valid.'

Neville sighed and nodded.

'Just because you had to be a warrior for a year, and you had to help us rebuild and get us back on our feet-' Neville went to protest that his role wasn't that important but was silenced by a Professor McGonagall raising her hand. He instantly quieted. '-doesn't mean that now we _are_ back on our feet, that you have helped us win our smaller battles and in turn the war, that your dream to devote your life to Herbology is any less relevant than it was all those years ago.'

Neville found a smile pulling at his lips. 'It would be so strange coming back here as staff!'

Professor McGonagall smiled. 'You will be welcomed with open arms and I have no doubt, that after Professor Sprout has finished with you, you will be more than a worthy replacement for her.'

Suddenly a thought occurred to Neville. 'But what about Hufflepuff house? Who will be their head?'

'Oh, don't you worry about that, Neville, Hufflepuffs make extraordinary teachers – their patience and hard working nature giving them something of an edge – as such we have a choice of candidates who will be an excellent Head of House. That is another dilemma for another day.'

Neville smiled and finished off his biscuit.

'Thank you, Professor, for… well… not behaving like my Grandmother is sure to when I tell her the choice I've made.'

'I think you do Augusta a disservice, she will be happy as long as you are.' Neville smiled, was about to disagree with the Professor, but then remembered how his Grandmother had smiled kindly the times she had caught him hesitating while signing his contract. Maybe McGonagall was right. 'I shall give you a few days to make your final decision and then I shall have the official job offer and contract sent to you with Athena.'

Neville smiled as Professor McGonagall's owl opened its eyes on hearing her name. The owl seemed to take in the situation and Neville could have sworn she nodded before closing her eyes again and settling back down to sleep. 'If you could get that back to us as soon as possible then we will sort out all the necessary paperwork.'

Neville nodded and his stomach squirmed in excitement and with nervousness.

'I'll be quick, don't worry about that.'

'Excellent, well, Longbo-,' she smiled and looked apologetically at him, 'Neville, you have some people to talk to and I have three more First Year Muggle-Born Liaison Appointments to organise with the Ministry, so I shall bid you good day and hope to hear from you soon.'

Neville grinned as he stood up. 'Thank you, Professor. For everything.'

He left the office and as he closed the heavy door behind him he breathed a huge sigh of relief.

Then he realised the hardest part was what was to come next.

And then he had to become a teacher.


	2. Start As You Mean To Go On

Short one this one, but fun to write. Let me know what you think! :D

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><p><strong>Start As You Mean To Go On<strong>

He had already had a meltdown about being solely responsible for the Herbology education of the students of Hogwarts, he had already rewritten his lesson plans for the first term three times, and Hannah had had to remove any quill and parchment from his Grandmother's house because he had threatened to write a letter of resignation five times. Thankfully she had managed to talk him round four times, but had cast Silencio on him the last time when she had finally run out of patience. Considering she normally had the patience of a saint, (she was a Hufflepuff after all) Neville realised he may have been overreacting slightly.

After two weeks of relative calm he had arrived at the school with his battered old trowel and a brand new set gardening tools – a present from his Grandmother, which had nearly brought him to tears – and arranged the small office at the back of Greenhouse One as he wanted. On the first of September at six o'clock he sat at the staff table in the Great Hall and watched as the forty or so new students walked nervously to the front of the hall and he watched as they got sorted. He clapped a little louder every time a new student was sorted in to Gryffindor and ate the wonderful food as if he wasn't going to eat for days.

The next morning he arrived at the school, and, after a quick meeting with Professor McGonagall – which mainly consisted of him feeling rather nervous and the Professor telling him over and over again that he would be fine with only the first year students not knowing him as a teacher – he walked down to Greenhouse One. His first class happened to be the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw First Years and as he arrived at the battered and weather-worn door of the Greenhouse a thought occurred to him and he smirked to himself. He quickly looked at his watch and realised he had enough time to execute his newly-formed plan.

He ran through to his office and pulled out a piece of parchment, he loaded his quill and scrawled a quick note.

_First Years,_

_Very sorry, will be a few minutes late, come in and have a look around but DO NOT touch anything._

_Professor Longbottom_

He stuck it to the door and ran through to Greenhouse Two. He carefully picked up the pot which housed the plant who had seen his training through with him – the Venomous Tentacula 'Toothy' he had nursed back to health – and after the plant had swiped him across the top of the head as an objection to being rudely awakened, Neville put it in full view of the main door to Greenhouse One.

With a quick glance at his watch, which read 8:50, he dragged his battered wooden stool into the corner of the room and cast a Dissolusionment Charm over himself. He quickly looked between the plants through the glass and saw the first few Ravenclaws making their way down the steps of the castle entrance.

He grinned and sat still waiting for them to arrive.

It seemed the first five students wanted to wait for backup before they ventured inside, and when there was a group of about ten students one brave Hufflepuff carefully turned the handle of the door and stepped inside. The others followed and Neville watched as a few of the Hufflepuffs pointed at a few of the plants that they recognised from their common room. Neville hadn't been in the Hufflepuff common room but Professor Sprout had told him what was in there and that a few of the now seventh years would look after the plants and come to Neville should there be a problem.

A couple of the Ravenclaws had been drawn to Toothy who had reached out a couple of his tendrils towards the students. One of the Ravenclaws lent in towards the plant and reached his hand towards it.

'Um… I wouldn't… if I were you. It might attack you.'

Neville grinned at the timid looking, blond haired Hufflepuff. She reminded him of Luna a little.

The Ravenclaw boy turned around and smirked at the girl. 'Oh, please, it's a plant, what harm can it do?'

The Hufflepuff went to argue but the Ravenclaw boy had already turned around and Neville could have sworn he saw a look of mischief on the Hufflepuff's face.

After a few seconds the Ravenclaw boy had poked the plant and then shrieked as Toothy clamped it's jaws around his hand and when he went to free himself, tendrils quickly wrapped around his other wrist.

Another of the Ravenclaw boys went to help and drew his wand from his pocket, but after thinking for a second he realised he had no idea what spell to use and looked at his wand like it was a stick he had picked up off the ground.

Neville let the students panic for a few seconds more and then removed the Dissolusionment Charm from himself and walked through the Greenhouse. A couple of the girls squealed when Neville appeared out of nowhere and they moved out of his way as he walked through them and over to the attacking plant and his victim.

'_Toothy!_ ' Neville said to the plant as if telling off a misbehaving puppy, which, to Neville, the plant was. He put his hand on the Ravenclaw boy's shoulder. 'Stop struggling.'

The student looked at him like he was insane but after a couple of involuntary twitches his shoulders relaxed. The plant, however, didn't loosen his grip. Neville turned towards the rest of the students.

'Does anyone know what I could do to get this plant here to release…'

He looked at the boy who quickly glanced at Neville before looking away again.

'Reece,' the boy said.

'Reece,' Neville repeated.

The girl who had spoken out before raised her hand in an almost apologetic way. Neville smiled at her.

'Vinegar, Professor. That's a Venomous Tentacular and they react badly to vinegar. Some people say that malt vinegar is worse, but that's not been proven and is more of an old wives tale than anything.'

Neville's smile grew wider and the girl smiled, too.

'Correct!' He turned once more towards the plant. 'Toothy, do I really need to get the vinegar out?'

The plant froze and after a few seconds unravelled from around Reece's wrists and finally removed his teeth from his hand. Instantly Reece started rubbing his hands. He sucked at the small puncture wound on his hand.

'Um, professor? Should he have done that? It is a Venomous plant after all.'

All the colour drained from Reece's face and he stared at Neville with his mouth open.

'Normally, yes, but this plant is no longer venomous, hasn't been for a few years now. Reece, you will be fine, Toothy here is relatively harmless as long as you don't poke him!'

Reece cleared his throat and blushed. Neville was relieved to see some colour come back to his face. 'I'm sorry, Professor Longbottom. It won't happen again.'

Neville nodded. 'Take five points for being curious enough to look and explore.'

Reece looked very shocked and instantly grinned at his first house points for Ravenclaw.

'However, you blatantly ignored what my note said. Not all the plants in the Greenhouses are as harmless as Toothy here and you always need to listen to what I say when you're around them, mainly because I'm your teacher but also because some can harm you. Five points from Ravenclaw for not doing what you were told.'

Reece looked mortified that he had lost his house points but nodded at Neville in resignation and understanding. Neville smiled and turned to the Hufflepuff who had answered his questions and tried to prevent Reece annoying the plant.

'What's your name?' he asked as he pulled the class list out of his robes.

'Clarissa, sir.'

Neville glanced down his list and didn't recognise Clarissa's surname. 'Well, Clarissa, take two points for knowing the name of the plant, two points for knowing what can protect against it, one for checking about the venom and five for trying to prevent Reece being chewed on in the first place.'

Clarissa looked overcome with the abundance of points she had been awarded and turned bright red. Neville couldn't help but notice how all the Ravenclaws looked jealous at Clarissa's points.

The rest of the lesson went without incident and he was pretty confident that none of them were bored.

He decided that would be the way his 'first' lessons would go from now on, with instructions and observations and teaching the students their most important Herbology lesson.


	3. Be Curious But Careful

Okay, in my personal head canon Neville has a son in the same year as James and he appears in this chapter as I see him. :) Sorry for the delay in posting, hectic weekend, last three chapters should be up tonight.

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><p><strong>Be Curious, But Careful<strong>

Many lessons, months and years had passed since Neville's first day as Herbology teacher at Hogwarts. He had seen students come and go, had been delighted by some of them and disappointed in others. He had watched the four houses come closer than he ever thought possible, and he had learned things about himself during that time, too.

He had fallen in love with Hannah, and for reasons still a little baffling to him, she had fallen in love with him, too. They had married and – a little quicker than they were expecting – Hannah had fallen pregnant.

He was expecting Harry and Ginny to start popping out mini Potters pretty quickly after they got married and he guessed that Ron and Hermione wouldn't be too far behind, but he and Hannah were all too happy to watch their friends deal with that particular chapter in their lives first, and perhaps pick up a few hints and tricks along the way before starting their own family.

Except one night they had drunk a little too much of Hannah's home-made wine and the contraception spell had been well and truly forgotten.

Five weeks later he came home to find his wife looking rather pale, and that look in her eye that he knew meant 'we have something important to discuss'.

He had thought he would be terrified, but for whatever reason, he had stayed calm and had actually grinned when Hannah had stopped talking.

'We're going to have a baby?' he asked, just in case his brain had misinterpreted something along the way.

'Um… yeah,' Hannah replied, a smile working its way onto her face and tears forming in her eyes. 'Are you… okay with that?'

Before consciously thinking about it, he nodded his head. 'Of course!'

In the weeks that followed he'd had his fair share of moments of intense panic that he was going to be a father, but after he'd had to calm a very panicky Harry Potter down for the exact same reason he realised he might be okay.

But as he watched his son Finlay board the train for his first trip to Hogwarts (as a student, Neville had let him help in the greenhouses during the summer holidays for the past few years) he started doubting whether he had done okay.

Neville found the Potters in the crowd, briefly wondered where Albus and Lily were and then watched as Harry gave James one last hug before seeing him on the train.

Neville knew that Finlay and James would sit together on the train, and would no doubt get into trouble together at school, regardless of whether they were in the same house or not, and this was where Neville's uncertainty came into play.

He knew saying 'he wanted his son to get into trouble' could be taking in entirely the wrong way, but he didn't want Finlay to be distracted by his Father working at his school. He wanted him to behave as Finlay thought he should and wanted to, and he didn't want him to constantly be looking over his should to see if his Dad was watching him.

That was what one half of his brain was thinking, the other half wanted to know his son's every move to make sure he was behaving, wasn't being bullied and wasn't losing his head in lessons. Thankfully that half of his brain only spoke out occasionally and was easily shouted down by the other half.

He watched both Finlay and James be sorted into Gryffindor and he grinned when he saw the look of relief on both the boys' faces. He had never put any pressure on Finlay when it came to his sorting, and he knew Harry hadn't either with James. Both boys had heard and read war stories over the years despite knowing the majority of the truth. All the 'hero descendants' as one awful magazine had called them had been brought up to know the facts as were appropriate to their ages. Hermione had reported that Rose had found out too much far too early – Neville was not surprised, she was her Mother's daughter – but despite all the parents' effort to keep the children completely grounded, they did occasionally hear a hyped up, overly colourful and not entirely truthful account from the war. Because of those occasional stories Neville knew that James especially, but Finlay, too felt pressure to live up to their fathers' reputations and surpass them. Getting sorted into Gryffindor was, in their eyes, a first step on that path.

His first class of this year was the N.E.W.T students, of which there were the second greatest amount since Neville became the Herbology teacher at the school. He enjoyed the first term's worth of teaching N.E.W.T level Herbology because there were new things to be taught, but after Christmas they were to start their own preparation for their final project of their N.E.W.T so Neville was there to guide and to assist, the teaching part became minimal.

After that class his son and James wandered down to Greenhouse One and, as usual Neville's note was pinned on the door. He thought his novel way of introducing the first years to Herbology would lose it's charm and surprise after a couple of years, but, strangely, none of the older students seemed to pass the information down to new starters or younger brothers and sisters. Occasionally he thought he thought he saw the odd pair of eyes flit to the corner of the room where he was sitting, hidden from view, but if those students knew what was going on, they didn't give anything away. A couple of them were rewarded with another student being harassed by his pet plant, and a couple got their House Point tally off to a good start.

As Finlay walked down the well beaten path with James, the rest of the Gryffindors and the Slytherins he was smiling and laughing but as he reached the door to the Greenhouse his smile slipped.

'Hey, you're Professor Longbottom's son, aren't you?' a taller Slytherin asked Finlay after reading Neville's note. His tone wasn't particularly harsh but it wasn't the friendliest either.

'Yeah, I am.' Neville tried to look around the numerous plants that sat between him and the door, but couldn't see a great deal, thankfully, none of the students thought to be quiet.

'Well, where is he? It's hardly a great first impression being late to our first lesson.'

Neville rolled his eyes but was waiting to see how Finlay would react.

'How should I know where he is? I'm his son, not his minder!'

James snorted and a couple of the other Gryffindor boys chuckled. The Slytherin didn't answer, just turned to the door and wrench the handle before storming in to the Greenhouse. The rest of the class followed but with smiles on their faces. Neville would have put money on the tall Slytherin being the one to come a cropper with Toothy but he just leant against on of the benches and scowled.

Neville didn't expect Finlay to be the one who came under Toothy's attention.

He watched as Finlay lined up along the side bench with the rest of the class.

'Hey, what's that?' one of the Gryffindors asked. He started to walk over to the plant but Finlay called out. 'I wouldn't touch it, they don't like people.'

The other boy turned and looked at Finlay. 'What does it do?' he asked, obviously thrilled by the prospect that this was a Highly Dangerous Plant.

Finlay smiled. 'It bites.'

'It _bites_?' the tall Slytherin boy exclaimed from the other end of the line. 'Then why on earth has your father left a biting plant on the bench where it could attack any one of us?'

Neville winced, this was not going well. While he didn't mind defending himself against an arrogant first year, he didn't want Finlay to come under attack because of him. He was about to stand up and stop the conversation but Finlay beat him to it.

'Are you saying my Father's not fit to teach here?' he asked, his voice raised ever so slightly.

'If he's leaving dangerous plants around then maybe his position should be rethought.'

'Oh, shut up, Tompkins, just because you didn't know what the plant was doesn't mean you have to be a complete prat to the people who do. There's no need to be embarrassed!' James said to the boy. The Gryffindors laughed.

'Do you honestly think my father would leave us in danger?' Finlay asked, a smirk working its way on to his face.

The Slytherin stood a little taller and puffed out his chest. 'Prove he hasn't.'

Neville frowned, not having a clue whether to say anything or let the boys resolve this on their own.

'Fine!' Finlay said as he started towards the plant. Neville stood and raised his wand to his head. Finlay knew that Toothy was harmless, venom-wise, but he didn't know that when the plant was in this Greenhouse he had started to become a little less laid back and placid over the years. He still was harmless, but his bite could still sting. Finlay knew how to avoid getting bitten by a Venomous Tentacular, venom-filled or not, but he also knew how to torment them.

Not sure what Finlay was about to prove, he watched as his son pinched the plant right at the root where he knew it would feel threatened the most and bite him the hardest.

As the plant's jaws locked around Finlay's hand he squeaked in pain but managed to not try and fight the plant.

'How is this proving the plant is safe?' the Slytherin asked, half terrified and half smug.

Finlay swallowed hard. 'Because if this plant were dangerous I'll have passed out within a minute.'

Neville realised the time had come to show himself. Finlay was, of course, right about the plant, but his son had never been brilliant with pain and he had never seen Toothy bite so hard. He rapped himself over the head with his wand and became visible. Finlay looked in his direction. There was no screaming on his revelation but all the students gasped.

'Toothy, let Fin go or I'll get the vinegar.' His voice was firm and the plant instantly let go of Finlay's hand. Finlay rubbed his hand and a bit of colour came back to his cheeks

He turned to the group. 'Okay, so what have we learned so far?'

The small Gryffindor who seemed impressed by the Toothy earlier stood on tip toe to make sure Neville could see him. 'That Venemous Tentaculars are brilliant!'

His comment broke the tension in the room and most of the students giggled.

Neville Leant against the bench and folded his arms. He smiled at the boy.

'You don't need to tell me that…'

'Oh! Simon, Professor,' the boy replied in answer to Neville's questioning gaze.

'Simon. Every potion you make during your time here will have a plant ingredient in it. Every time you end up in the hospital wing and take a medicinal compound it will have a plant ingredient in it. Plants are extraordinary in many ways, and let's not forget the most important way… getting you out of trouble with mothers, girlfriends and wives!'

James grinned at him, probably knowing a bit too much information about the ways Neville had been in trouble with Hannah over the years and had to grovel with flowers, chocolates and wine to get back in her good books.

'So, first thing learnt, plants are fascinating things. Second thing learnt…'

None of the students said anything. Neville was about to answer his own question when Finlay spoke.

'Don't poke a Venomous Tentacular.'

His mouth pulled into a smile and Neville couldn't help but snort at his words.

'As my son showed you earlier, you should never poke a Venomous Tentacular unless you want to get bitten as beautifully demonstrated by Toothy. As you can see, Fin is not a twitching heap on the floor so you can be sure that this Venomous Tentacular is not venomous. As it happens, this plant is something of a family pet and is used to prove a point to you lot should you have disobeyed my instructions. The note on the door said…'

He looked towards the tall Slytherin boy who was still scowling. He met his eye and looked uncomfortable but answered Neville.

'_I'll be a few minutes late, come in and have a look around but don't touch anything._ Words to that effect anyway.'

Neville smiled. 'One point to Slytherin.' The Slytherin student stood a little taller and the scowl disappeared off his face. 'So you all passed my initiation test, you read the note, came in and didn't touch anything. The point of the note and instructions on it was to see whether you would follow my instruction. Thankfully you did. Mister…'

He leant towards the tall Slytherin.

'Tompkins. Gerald Tompkins.'

Neville nodded. 'Mister Tompkins here expressed concerns that I have left you here with dangerous plants which could attack you. Well, on this occasion he is wrong and I would never leave a first year class alone with dangerous plants. Having said that, over your years at Hogwarts I will show you plants that are dangerous, harmful and poisonous. When I do I expect you to listen to my instructions and follow them to the letter. You may think it strange that you're being subjected to danger but these plants are necessary to our way of life.

'If you listen to me, follow my instruction and are careful in the Greenhouses there's no reason why you should ever be hurt and I hope you learn to love this subject. Be curious but be careful, that's the rule around here.'

He turned to Gerald and smiled.

'Have I alleviated any concerns you had, Gerald?' he asked calmly.

Gerald nodded. 'I'm sorry, Professor… for what I said earlier.'

'Apology accepted.'

'Finlay, will you accept my apology, too?'

Neville was taken aback by the boy's apologies but he was obviously pleased that the Slytherin knew how to apologise.

Finlay looked at the Slytherin and eventually smiled. 'I will, but if you insult my dad again I'll set Toothy on you!'

He grinned and Gerald laughed along with the rest of the class.

_Well Neville,_ he thought _I think your son will be just fine._


	4. A Rose And Her Thorns

In Realmer06's Beautiful _Among Thorns_ and _Fighting Briars _she has Rose, Scorpius and Albus written wonderfully, I have, without her permission, stolen the Rose in those stories and tried my best to write her into this story. Whether or not I have succeeded is for Realmer06 to decide and hopefully she won't be totally appalled by my attempt. Regardless of whether or not I have managed to do what I intended I insist you go and read those stories if you haven't already. They deserve your attention. I have totally stolen one of her lines of dialogue, which if you go and read her stories, you'll be able to find. :)

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><p><strong>A Rose and Her Thorns<strong>

Something was bothering Rose Weasley, so much so that her two best friends had noticed, so much so that _he_ had noticed.

There was an unspoken agreement between him, Harry and Ginny, and Ron and Hermione that he would keep an eye out on the descendents for them. He wouldn't openly interfere (unless they were in danger), but the children knew they could go to him with any problems or concerns.

Rose was normally jovial, laughing with her classmates and friends but mostly taking in every new thing she was being asked to learn.

So when she started slipping points in the small, weekly tests Neville set for the class and her homework wasn't up to her usual standard (she never failed anything but _just passing_ was hardly Rose Weasley's style) he knew something was really quite wrong.

At seventeen years old she was as headstrong as her father and as passionate about what she believed in as her mother. She knew her own mind and would defend her friends to the last. She was also one of three surprise Ravenclaws the year she started Hogwarts.

Rose Weasley, a Ravenclaw. Hermione was delighted and there was nothing Rose could do that would disappoint her father despite his jokes of disinheritance should she not be placed in Gryffindor.

She joined Albus Potter and Scorpius Malfoy in Rowena Ravenclaw's house and they had been firm friends since their first journey to school. While, after some thought their sorting may have made some sort of sense, their friendship took some people a little longer to understand.

But whatever drew them together stuck throughout their time at school. They were rarely seen apart, and although their parents may seriously disagree with Neville's thought that they had very similar traits to another, rather well known trio of friends, his proof for those thoughts grew with every week that passed.

However, either her normal support network was failing to help her deal with whatever was obviously troubling her or she was keeping her problems tight to her chest.

When she slipped into an otherwise unoccupied Greenhouse Two, checking behind her as she shut the door, he decided he would try and help her with whatever was bothering her. He watched her through the glass of Greenhouse One for a minute, and then made his way across the grass between the two Greenhouses and slipped quietly in through the back door.

He watched as she quietly stripped a few stems of Lavender of their flower and brushed them into a small bag that tied with ribbon. Neville stepped out of the shadows towards her.

'That's the second time in a week you've replenished the Lavender in that bag.'

Rose had jumped at his voice and instantly had looked guilty at being caught.

'I'm sorry, Professor. I just…'

She didn't seem to know how to finish her sentence and slumped when she realised that fact.

'Rose, I know you use Lavender to try and calm yourself before you go to sleep, you have done since you were three and got yourself upset over a lost teddy bear.' He rarely used stories from outside school to get a response out of his students, but this time he felt it necessary. He was getting more concerned by the minute. 'You've never used my Lavender stores this frequently in all your time here. I know I never normally demand to know what's wrong if anything's bothering you, your brother or your cousins, but there's obviously something wrong. Your work's not your usual standard, you're rather unhappy and I need to know if your parents need to be informed.'

His words shocked her into turning to him. 'No, you can't. _Please_ Professor. I'll… I'll concentrate harder and I'll redo any work that isn't up to standard-.'

'Rose, it's not your work I'm worried about, it's you! Please tell me what's bothering you so much so I can try and help.'

She smiled a sad smile. 'Uncle Neville, if you'd've been able to help, I would have come to you already.'

Neville sighed and nodded. He also took his staff robes off and stood before her in his jeans and jumper, back to being her uncle and not her teacher. She turned to him and seemed to gather some courage before speaking.

'Is there anything Finlay could do that would make you ashamed of him? Or very disappointed at least?'

Neville frowned and leant against the bench that housed his sought after Lavender stems.

'Every time he lets his bedroom get into a state after his Mother's asked him time after time to keep it tidy I'm disappointed.'

He was pleased when he managed to make her smile but he knew that wasn't the type of answer she was looking for. He took a deep breath.

'Finlay has never disappointed me. He thinks before he acts, he works hard, he's fiercely loyal and he stands up for what he believes in. If he's ever done something that has made me angry or frustrated, after the fact it has become apparent why he made those choices and I've been more proud of him for taking the right option and not the easy one.'

Rose nodded. Neville thought she looked like she wanted to ask him something else but wasn't sure if she should.

'Rose, you know by now nothing you could ask could offend me.'

She nodded again and took a deep breath. 'Do you think he ever worried about disappointing you like… like you did with your Gran.'

Neville smiled and nodded.

'Unfairly, over generations everyone with the name Weasley who came to Hogwarts had something of a reputation to live up to. Bill not as much, your Dad especially with not only his mother and father to follow but six older brothers and then a younger sister to be seen to be looking after when she arrived. Harry, well, he had to follow up defeating Voldemort as a one year old, which, is hardly a great way to start your school career. And then there's you lot; Finlay, James, You, Al, Scorpius, Hugo and Lily, Teddy too when he was here. You had so much pressure on you, and expectations – good and bad – were placed on you when you were only a few years old.' He physically winced at his words. 'But, you lived up to all the hype and more because you became your own people. You defied all the hype and ridiculousness and you became exactly who you were supposed to be: _you_!'

He found he was a little out of breath at his words such was his belief in them and he rolled his eyes at himself.

'Anyway, to answer your original question, my pressure didn't come from the press or post-war hype, it came from my Gran who, at the end of the day, wanted me to make my Dad proud of me. I'm not saying her methods were right but her heart was in the right place. Did Finlay have similar worries when he started at school? Probably, but in his first lesson in this classroom he showed that he was being himself and not the person he thought I would want him to be.'

Rose smiled but it soon disappeared. Neville didn't know if he'd alleviated her stress or just added to it. He decided to have a stab in the dark, he found his intuition wasn't too bed in these cases.

'Rose, I don't believe there is anything you could do that would _ever_ make your dad or your mum disappointed in you.'

Instantly tears formed in Rose's eyes. He wasn't sure if she was about to walk out of the Greenhouse but he was pleased when she just turned towards the bench and leant heavily on it.

'I have to disagree,' she whispered.

Neville was growing more alarmed by the second.

'Rose-'

'Before the war, there were some people you hated because of what they stood for, what they did and what they believed in. Is it ever possible to let go of that hatred or is something like that so deeply ingrained into you that you never move past it?'

Neville sighed deeply, forgiveness had never come very easily to him, it was something he'd had to work at for a long time after the war to get to a place where he was at some sort of peace with it all.

'Forgiveness is a very personal thing, Rose. There's not one rule that everyone abides to. A lot of people stay bitter towards people who have done them wrong, but, thankfully, me, your Dad, Harry… we've managed - over time - to realise there are more important things to focus our energy on. Some days you wake up and dwell on things that once hurt you _so_ much, and then you go weeks without even thinking about them. At some point, they even stop bothering you when you do think about them, but… there are… things that will always hurt and that you can't forgive.'

Rose nodded and he worried that he had just added to her stress.

'And asking someone to forgive something they can't… pushing that hatred in their face for selfish reasons… not being able to stop something building despite knowing it's wrong… they're reasons to be disappointed in someone, aren't they Uncle Neville?'

'Rose, please just tell me what's wrong! I can help!'

'I told you, no one can help.'

'Not even your friends? Surely Al, or Scor-'

In an instant everything became clear. _There were some people you hated because of what they stood for, what they did and what they believed in … pushing that hatred in their face for selfish reasons … not being able to stop something building despite knowing it's wrong._

Panic spread across Rose's face and she turned towards him. She knew he had worked out that she was falling in love with her best friend, that she had followed in her mother's footsteps and fallen in love with a boy she had met on her first train journey to Hogwarts and become firm friends with over years.

Tears fell down her face. 'Don't tell them, _please!_ I'm not even sure myself… it's not as if it's even mutual… I'll push past it, like you said people do…' She had run out of steam and run out of ways to try and make her situation seem manageable and not that big of a deal. '_How could a Weasley ever love a Malfoy?_'

She had barely whispered it and seemed to be shocked that she had said it out loud at all. She swallowed hard and took a shaky breath.

'Please, don't tell them.'

Neville closed his eyes. 'Rose, every member of your family who fought in that war did so because we wanted our freedom and we wanted our children to have that freedom, too. We wanted freedom for everyone, Rose, whether Muggle born, Half Blood, Pure Blood, Mixed Breed, whether you want to live to the letter of Wizarding tradition or whether you want to marry a Muggle and fit your house with every electrical Muggle gadget that exists, we fought so you had the freedom to choose. In my experience you don't have a choice when it comes to falling in love, but we fought damn hard to make it so that you should never have to be ashamed of admitting your feelings. Please, whatever you do, Rose, don't ever, _ever_ forget that.'

Rose looked a little stunned at his words and he hoped they had made a positive impression, only time would tell.

'I won't tell your parents your feelings, but if your work slips any further then your mum will figure things out pretty quickly. You are your mother's daughter, after all.'

Rose picked up her bag of Lavender off the bench.

'Last time I checked, my mother didn't fall in love with Draco Malfoy.'

She turned on her heal and stalked to the Greenhouse door.

'We live in a different world now, Rose.'

She looked at him and for a split second he could she her starting to believe his words, but then she set her jaw and shook her head.

'Not different enough.' And with that, she walked away.

Neville had been told that teaching would bring him challenges that he would never, ever expect.

He walked through to the office at the back of the Greenhouse and took the small bottle of Firewhiskey – usually reserved for the older students if they'd been attacked by a plant and needed to settle their nerves - out of his draw and took a swig.

Today was one of those days that he had never prepared himself for.


	5. A New Beginning

**A New Beginning**

The ceremony was due to start in half an hour and Neville was making sure everything looked in place before guests started to arrive in ten minutes time, carried by the carriages from Hogsmeade Station up to the castle.

Even though thirty years had passed since that day he could remember every as vividly as he did on the first anniversary. That day still sits in his mind as one of the strangest days he had ever encountered, thankfully, the anniversary ceremonies had become more of a meeting of old friends, rather than a nervous first meeting trying to work everything out.

As he took one final look around the Great Hall and was happy with what he saw, Professor McGonagall slowly walked up the aisle that divided the mass of chairs in front of him. She was smiling at him, but still had an air of stress due to organising a thirtieth anniversary ceremony.

'The Hall looks magnificent, Neville, thank you so much for all your hard work.'

'It was my pleasure, Minerva, truly.'

She nodded and he couldn't help but suspect that she looked a little upset. It was understandable, this was an emotional time every year, but he thought there might have been something else.

'There's something I want to ask you, Neville, and I ask that you give it some thought before you give me your answer. I have kept this from all the staff except Bridget as I didn't in any way want to disrupt the normal activity in the school or overshadow anything.'

Neville frowned, he had an inkling he knew what was about to be said and he didn't want to hear it.

'I shall be retiring from Hogwarts at the end of this school year.' Neville closed his eyes and his head dropped. 'Don't try and persuade me to stay, Longbottom, I have thought about this for many years now and the time is right for me to take my leave.'

Neville gave a sad smile at Minerva's use of his surname. 'And there's nothing I or anyone else can say to try and dissuade you?' he asked, already knowing the answer to the question.

'Kingsley has been trying for six months now to convince me to stay on, but my mind is made up and I leave in a few weeks time.'

Neville nodded, still unhappy but knowing saying anything was as useful as a chocolate fireguard.

'I presume Bridget will be taking over?' Neville asked.

McGonagall nodded and smiled. 'She is more than ready to take over the running of the school and she will bring something new to it as every Headmaster and Headmistress has done. My retirement shall be announced a month before the end of term to let everyone adjust to the idea, initially I thought waiting until the last day of term would be a better option – I do despise long goodbyes – but Kingsley thought this the better option and after some persuasion I came around to his way of thinking. Everything is organised but there is one last thing I need to do and that is replace Bridget as head of Gryffindor House. This is where I hope you will help me, Neville. I can think of no one better for the job and as soon as you started work here I sincerely hoped I would be the one who got to ask you to become Gryffindor's head.'

Neville blinked at the Headmistress and sat down heavily on one of the many chairs in the Hall. He took a deep breath.

'But Minerva… I don't live in the castle and I need to be available to the students at every hour of the day, it's just not practical me having that position-'

McGonagall held up a hand to silence him. 'Arrangements can be made, Neville. You are, of course, and Hannah too, welcome to take up residence in the castle at any point, it is not unheard of in the history of the school for wives and husbands to live in the staff quarters where deemed necessary, but if that is not suitable there are certain things that can be done. I won't go into them now, their explanations are rather long-winded and I don't have time to go through them before our guests start arriving. My point is that you not living in the castle is not a problem and you shouldn't use it as a reason not to take the position.'

Neville nodded and tried to think of pros and cons as he should do when taking on something like this, but as he tried to make a logical and sensible list he found he didn't care about any cons he might come up with after a few days' thought, this was something he wanted to do.

'Can I give you my answer now?' he asked with a smile.

'If you are accepting the position, then of course, if not, then no.'

He laughed out loud and Minerva smiled.

'Then I accept the position of Head of Gryffindor House. Nothing would make me more proud.'

Minerva beamed at him and squeezed his arm. 'Believe me, Neville, there is nothing I could see that would make me more proud than watching you become Head of Gryffindor House.'

He could see tears in her eyes and he could feel a lump forming in his throat. He swallowed and Minerva quickly looked away and let go of his arm. They heard the main doors open and the increase in noise let them know their guests had started to arrive. Neville took a deep breath and stood from his seat.

'Today will be a beautiful day,' he said as he spotted Hannah and Finlay, Harry and Ginny, Ron and Hermione and the rest of the Weasley clan, which now had a new generation to fuss over and surround with love.

Every face which appeared at the door and took a seat was a familiar one and Neville had never felt more at home. As much as the day would bring up some upset and pain, he would face it with a smile and a feeling of looking forward to every second of it. He greeted his family and friends and eventually took his seat as Harry stood to address the crowd.

He looked around the Hall and tried to take in every face that sat and listened and he remembered those who had died for their cause all those years ago.

And he was content that his world _was_ a better place now. As well as defeating a psychotic man who couldn't love they started to defeat the greater enemy of prejudice. Muggleborns fought side by side with Purebloods. Werewolves fought side by side with House Elves, descendents of Veela fought side by side with descendents of Giants and because every person who fought lost something that night, they realised that evil was not found in what was different, but those who could not see past their own insecurities and fear to form friendship and love.

He thanked fate that he had ended up here when things could have been so different and he thanked each one of his students for giving him the most interesting career he could ever have wished for.


End file.
